Professional Documents
Culture Documents
8e
By Charles W.L. Hill
What Is Ethics?
Ethics refers to accepted principles of right or wrong that govern
the conduct of a person the members of a profession the actions of an organization
Business ethics are the accepted principles of right or wrong governing the conduct of business people Ethical strategy is a strategy, or course of action, that does not violate these accepted principles
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Suppose work conditions in a host nation are clearly inferior to those in the multinationals home nation Which standards should apply?
home country standards host country standards something in between
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What are the responsibilities of firms in countries where basic human rights are not respected?
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Some parts of the environment are a public good that no one owns, but anyone can despoil The tragedy of the commons occurs when a resource held in common by all, but owned by no one, is overused by individuals, resulting in its degradation What happens when environmental regulations in host nations are far inferior to those in the home nation? Is it permissible for multinationals to pollute in developing countries simply because there are no regulations against it?
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Advocates argue that businesses need to recognize their noblesse oblige - honorable and benevolent behavior that is the responsibility of successful companies
give something back to the societies that have made their success possible
But, are multinationals morally required to use their power to enhance local welfare?
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1. Decision-making processes - the values and norms that are shared among employees of an organization
organization culture that does not emphasize business culture encourages unethical behavior
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What Are The Straw Men Approaches To Business Ethics?approaches There are four common straw men
1. Friedman doctrine - the only social responsibility of business is to increase profits, so long as the company stays within the rules of law 2. Cultural relativism - ethics are culturally determined and firms should adopt the ethics of the cultures in which they operate when in Rome, do as the Romans do 1. Righteous moralist - a multinationals home country standards of ethics should be followed in foreign countries 2. Nave immoralist - if a manager of a multinational sees that firms from other nations are not following ethical norms in a host nation, that manager should not either All approaches offer inappropriate guidelines for ethical decision making
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What Are Utilitarian And Kantian Approaches To Ethics? worth of Utilitarian ethics - the moral
actions or practices is determined by their consequences
actions are desirable if they lead to the best possible balance of good consequences over bad consequences but, it is difficult to measure the benefits, costs, and risks of an action the approach fails to consider justice
Kantian ethics - (Immanuel Kant) people should be treated as ends and never purely as means to the ends of
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Moral theorists argue that fundamental human rights form the basis for the moral compass that managers should navigate by when making decisions which have an ethical component
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John Rawls argued that all economic goods and services should be distributed equally except when an unequal distribution would work to everyones advantage
impartiality is guaranteed by the veil of ignorance - everyone is imagined to be ignorant of all his or her particular characteristics
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Step 2: Determine whether a proposed decision would violate the fundamental rights of any stakeholders
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In the end, there are clearly things that an international business should do, and there are things that an international business should not do But, not all ethical dilemmas have a clean and obvious solution
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Review Question
All of the following except ____ contribute to unethical behavior by international managers. a) Decision-making processes b) Leadership c) Personal ethics d) National culture
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Review Question
According to ________, a companys home country standards of ethics are the appropriate ones to follow in foreign countries. a) the righteous moralist b) the nave immoralist c) the Friedman doctrine d) cultural relativism
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Review Question
________ recognize that human beings have fundamental rights and privileges which transcend national boundaries and cultures. a) Kantian ethics b) Utilitarian approaches c) Straw men
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Review Question
The _____ suggests that everyone is imagined to be ignorant of all his or her particular characteristics. a) tragedy of the commons b) veil of ignorance c) code of ethics d) the Universal Declaration of Human
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Review Question
What is a companys formal statement of ethical priorities called? a) Mission statement b) Code of ethics c) Code of values d) Organizational culture
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Review Question
Which is not an area where multinational firms are concerned about ethics? a) Human rights b) Trade regulations c) Environmental regulations d) Corruption
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